Performer: Off-campus party not offensive

The recent off-campus party that has sparked two weeks of racial discord at the University of California San Diego was a multicultural affair that should not have offended anyone, says a black man who claims to have headlined the event.

Internet personality “Jiggaboo Jones” of Las Vegas, who gave his real name yesterday as Nipsey Washington, said the Feb. 15 event drew about 250 people, including Filipinos, whites and African-Americans. He would not say where the party was held.

His account is the first description by anyone at the party of what happened, as most of the publicity has come from students and others who were outraged by an invitation that circulated on the Internet. Campus officials condemned the party but have refused to identify the hosts. They would not confirm Washington’s involvement.

Invitations posted on Facebook labeled the event the “Compton Cook Out” and included a photograph of Washington, a profane, self-styled comic. He said he has appeared at similar house parties in the San Diego area since 2005.

He said some partygoers at the recent event smeared black makeup on their faces and ate watermelon. Others donned baggy pants and gold-colored jewelry as part of a “ghetto” theme.

“This was no racist event,” Washington said. “A good time was had by all.”

UCSD administrators have launched an investigation into the gathering, focusing on nine students who have been identified as participants.

“We don’t want to comment on Jones because we don’t want to give him any credibility,” he said.

Gattas declined to elaborate, citing the ongoing probe.

UCSD junior Snann Keflezighi, a leader of the Black Student Union, said Washington’s presence does not change her view of the party, regardless of his race.

“Even if he was part of it, that doesn’t take away from the fact that the party was wrong.”

The event, and the recent airing of a racially charged show on a student-run TV station, have spurred a wave of complaints that the campus is not welcoming to blacks and other disadvantaged minorities.

Several hundred UCSD students and others staged a marathon rally on campus Wednesday to protest the poor racial climate and to demand that the administration move faster to boost minority enrollment and retention.

The president of a fraternity whose members helped organize the party, Pi Kappa Alpha, issued a statement apologizing for the event, acknowledging that it was “racially offensive.”

Campus administrators have not said which student-conduct codes may have been violated. They have the discretion to discipline students for off-campus behavior under limited circumstances, tied to the seriousness of the misconduct and other factors.

Washington, 37, says he is a stand-up comic who makes regular appearances at parties across Southern California.